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FROG IN HAND
stories that move

Creation, Performance & Education

Join the movement.

Video footage onUP & Digital Aperture

Online Offerings

A standing, smiling female dancer with a ponytail

FREE ONLINE WORKSHOP
with Rehearsal Director Alice Cavanagh
Produced by Jaberi Dance Theatre

A woman smiling with one hand upraised

GRANT WRITING BASICS
An online digital workshop with Colleen Snell

ABOUT US

Two sisters, one backyard, and many frogs.
So our story begins...

Contemporary dance in a costume performs in a park

Image: Zachary Bastille by Tamara Romanchuk

Frog in Hand began with a cast of frogs performing circus tricks under the artistic direction of sisters, Noelle Hamlyn and Colleen Snell, who were one and five years old at the time. From this whimsical debut springs our firm belief that art begins in humble places – including the mud and grass of our own backyards.  Although we are now a diverse collective of dancers, choreographers, musicians, actors, spoken word poets,  designers and visual artists, we are still inspired by where we find ourselves.

We are storytellers. We are inspired by local tales, people, and communities that now extend beyond our back yard to include professional training at The Banff Centre, LADMMI, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, London Contemporary Dance School (UK), Shiseikan Budojo (Tokyo) and Barefoot College (Tanzania). With dance at the forefront, we blend disciplines, treasuring the interaction between space, place and the possibilities of narrative. We seek to blur boundaries that separate art forms, artists, audiences and communities; we collaborate with others who have similar aspirations.

Frog in Hand  Company members have trained with Gaga Movement (Israel), Jacob’s Pillow, Third Rail (NYC), Peggy Baker Dance Projects, and ProArteDanza. We are all committed to listening for stories and working in community context. Since our first professional performance in 2012 we have produced 45+ original creations and 3 festivals sharing stories with audiences in parks, schools, gazebos, staircases, fountains, abandoned factories, elevators, galleries, street corners and theatres. 

Statement & Actions in Solidarity

Frog in Hand stands with Black and BIPOC communities in the fight against systemic racism. On June 28th, 2020 we released a statement affirming this stance, and outlining actions we would take to address these oppressions. In September 2020 we released a follow up and update on the actions taken so far. You can read our statement, and the steps we are taking to follow up, on the page below. We are open to feedback and listening. We understand this learning process is ongoing and lifelong.

Land Acknowledgement

This image is of local lands; the water tower is one of the oldest structures here in Mississauga. This picture was taken by artist and friend Nettie Seip. Frog in Hand works on these lands frequently, and they deeply inspire us. When we work here, we feel our responsibility to the delicate environment we exist within. Like the land, we believe the Arts contribute to healing; our relationship with the natural environment and the Arts contribute to the decolonizing journey we share.

 

As we work on these lands, Frog in Hand invites us all to consider how we will write the stories of our future... How we will choose to live together, how we will find ways to honour one other, and the delicate environment we exist within. 
 

Thank you for joining us as we tell our stories.

A water tower in a field in mississauga
Image by Magdalena

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Charity Number: 743642290 RR 0001

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Land Acknowledgement

We are privileged to work, live and play on the traditional territories of the Anishinabek, Haudenosaunee, and Wendat peoples - Treaty 13A territory. This territory is included in the Dish with One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, which is an agreement to peaceably share and care for the land and its resources. We understand the standard of living we enjoy here in Canada is a result of thousands of years of stewardship by the original inhabitants and the inequitable taking of the land from them. We acknowledge that in order to have reconciliation, we must first understand truth; we commit to move forward in an effort to achieve both. Our CoFounders, Colleen and Noelle, are settlers from Welsh, Ukrainian and English roots, and their heritage is but one piece of the tapestry that is Frog in Hand. Frog in Hand is a collective of artists with diverse backgrounds and histories, heritages and family stories of their own. 

 

We are all Treaty People. On September 30th each year we mark the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Every day we are mindful of broken covenants and we strive to make this right. We commit to collaboration based on the foundational assumption that Indigenous Peoples have the power, strength, and competency to develop culturally specific strategies for their communities. We are dedicated to honoring Indigenous self-determination, history, and culture, and are committed to moving forward in the spirit of reconciliation and respect with all First Nation, Metis and Inuit people.

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Charity Number: 743642290 RR 0001

Frog in Hand receives operating support from the City of Mississauga

Read our Privacy Policy  @2024 frog in hand. logo design Syd McManus

outline of a white frog sitting

Creation 
Performance
Education

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